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So as 2026 begins, a man celebrating Chelsea’s Club World Cup triumph is still working. Yet Donald Trump’s viability is no match for Enzo Maresca. His dramatic decline in fortunes, from destroying Barcelona to leaving Chelsea in just six weeks, can be reflected in Absolutely weird press conference After beating Everton, he spoke of the “worst 48 hours” of his tenure. if The last 48 could get worse again, It could also mean that Chelsea’s top brass, like many others, don’t actually pay much attention to the Club World Cup.
It also shows the enduring instability at Stamford Bridge. This may be part of Roman Abramovich’s legacy. However, Clearlake Capital and Todd Boehly look like Abramovich in overdrive. Maresca’s successor will be the seventh person to take charge of games in their three-and-a-half-year ownership; or, if there is a caretaker, the eighth.
Maresca appears to be the latest victim of Chelsea’s mid-season death spiral: Frank Lampard, Andre Villas-Boas and Luiz Felipe Scolari lost their jobs as a result, while Carlo Ancelotti never recovered from a midwinter slump. Mourinho’s departure in December 2015 reflected a miserable four months. A recurring trait, though, is that managers who win trophies may leave just a few months later. 2012 Champions League Champion Roberto Di Matteo didn’t even get to make it through Christmas.
Maresca’s exit could be a sign of failure for him and Chelsea’s power brokers. There are three days left before departure Manchester City It turns out it won’t be a Maresca reunion; suggestions the Italian is listed GuardiolaThe replacement looks to be convenient for him. The wider assessment might be that, despite some memorable wins at Stamford Bridge – most recently Barcelona and especially a remarkable victory over Paris Saint-Germain in July – he was lucky enough to get the Chelsea job on the basis of one season at Leicester City, but not always convincingly. To imagine him as Manchester City’s first choice to succeed Guardiola would require a further leap of faith.
Maresca has won at least two trophies since his mentor lifted one, but with Chelsea having far more resources than any other team in the Western Conference, that’s hardly an achievement. He probably won’t be missed by many in the fanbase. Some people rarely find football exciting. Whether it was selection or substitution, there were strange decisions. It has the chorus of “You don’t know what you’re doing” Tuesday’s 2-2 draw with Bournemouth.
In his defence, the Club World Cup was always likely to have a damaging impact on the season, with Chelsea refusing to take breaks or pre-season and some of the rotation needed to try and avoid injuries. Maresca has been without catalytic Cole Palmer for much of the season, while his best center back, Levi Colwell, has also been sidelined throughout.
But he leaves Chelsea in fifth place, just five points ahead of 14th place. They barely made it to the Champions League last season, although they mustered the courage to win five of their last six games Premier League So it matches. But he failed to achieve excellence in either the top flight or the Champions League, although Barcelona finished 13th in the Champions League. Chelsea are eight points behind Arsenal in the Europa League and 15 points behind Arsenal in the English League. There will be no title challenge, and there hasn’t been one under Clearlake and Boley.
Maresca’s Chelsea were deficient in football; so were the cantankers. Their indiscipline mirrored that of Maresca. Perhaps this volatility is just another sign that the club is in a state of flux. Around £1.6bn has been spent on players since the 2022 takeover. The returns are clearly still mixed, with a lack of world-class goalkeepers and centre-forwards.
Some players have improved under Maresca, such as the rejuvenated Reece James, Marc Cucurella and Moises Caicedo. Others have failed to make the grade: summer newcomers such as Liam Delap, Jorrel Hato, Alejandro Garnacho and Jamie Gittens have produced too little. In each case, there is likely to be debate as to how much blame should be placed on the players, how much on the coaches and how much on the clubs.
Chelsea’s model appears to be part of the problem, however, with the owner and sporting director parting ways with another manager, they have given the impression they consider themselves blameless and their recruitment inspired.
While they eschew the old-style Chelsea approach of appointing big-name players, it’s hard to escape the feeling that they are looking for a malleable manager. They found a man who orchestrated memorable and bizarre results, but whose overall record was reasonable and unspectacular, and who was quickly discarded when relationships fell apart. Meanwhile, Maresca’s collapse over the past few weeks has done little to improve his reputation. Chelsea’s path points to the Etihad. This might not be for him. But after the past few weeks, it feels difficult to determine which manager is right for Chelsea, or which club Maresca is best suited to manage.